Nominees and Award Recipients

12th Annual Nominees

These particular categories will be both nominated and voted on by the development community. Unless otherwise noted each award is given to games made publicly available during the calendar year of 2011.

 

Game of the Year Batman: Arkham City (Rocksteady Studios) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios) Portal 2 (Valve) Deus Ex: Human Revolution (Eidos Montreal) Dark Souls (FromSoftware)

 

Best Narrative Portal 2 (Valve) The Witcher 2 (CD Projekt RED) Bastion (Supergiant Games) Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Naughty Dog) Saints Row: The Third (Volition)

 

Best Game Design The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios) The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword (Nintendo) Portal 2 (Valve) Batman: Arkham City (Rocksteady Studios) Dark Souls (FromSoftware)

 

Best Technology Battlefield 3 (DICE) L.A. Noire (Team Bondi) Crysis 2 (Crytek Frankfurt/UK) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios) Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Naughty Dog)

 

Best Visual Arts Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (Naughty Dog) Rayman Origins (Ubisoft Montpellier) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios) El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron (Ignition Japan) Battlefield 3 (DICE)

 

Best Debut Supergiant Games (Bastion) Team Bondi (L.A. Noire) Re-Logic (Terraria) Bioware Austin (Star Wars: The Old Republic) Eidos Montreal (Deus Ex: Human Revolution)

 

Innovation Award Skylanders: Spyro's Adventure (Toys For Bob) Portal 2 (Valve) Bastion (Supergiant Games) Johann Sebastian Joust (Die Gute Fabrik) L.A. Noire (Team Bondi)

 

Best Handheld/Mobile Game Tiny Tower (NimbleBit) Super Mario 3D Land (Nintendo) Jetpack Joyride (Halfbrick) Infinity Blade II (Chair Entertainment) Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP (Capy Games/Superbrothers)

 

Best Audio Bastion (Supergiant Games) LittleBigPlanet 2 (Media Molecule) The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda Game Studios) Dead Space 2 (Visceral Games) Portal 2 (Valve)

 

Best Downloadable Game Stacking (Double Fine) From Dust (Ubisoft Montpellier) Bastion (Supergiant Games) Outland (Housemarque) Frozen Synapse (Mode 7)

 

Best New Social/Online Game

In 2010, the Game Developers Choice Awards added a sister Game Developers Conference Online Awards ceremony focused around the rise of online games, paired with Austin's GDC Online conference. Highlights from the 2nd Annual ceremony, which chose Trion Worlds' Rift as Best New Online Game and Mojang's Minecraft as Best Live Game during GDC Online 2011 last October, will be shown during the main Choice Awards ceremony.

 

12th Annual Special Awards

These three special honors, selected by the Game Developers Choice Awards advisory board, will be presented at the ceremony.

 

Lifetime Achievement Winner

2012 Recipient
Warren Spector

The Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes the career and achievements of a developer who has made an indelible impact on the craft of game development and games as a whole.

 

Pioneer Award Winner

2012 Recipient
Dave Theurer

The Pioneer Award (formerly known as the First Penguin Award) celebrates those individuals who developed a breakthrough technology, game concept, or gameplay design at a crucial juncture video game history - paving the way for the myriads who followed them.

 

Ambassador Award Winner

2012 Recipients
Ken Doroshow and Paul M. Smith

The Ambassador Award honors an individual or individuals who have helped the game industry advance to a better place, either through facilitating a better game community from within, or by reaching outside the industry to be an advocate for video games and help further our art.

Pictures are available in the Photos page.